Promises
by Min Daae
Summary: Karla and Jaenelle meet a few days before Winsol and Karla is concerned.


Karla watched the sun sink toward the horizon, humming to herself. It flashed on the snow of the peaks, turning the pure, blue waters of the glacial lake below to gold. For anyone else it would have been a stunningly beautiful sight, but Karla was indifferent, distracted by listening to the Webs, waiting, her hands tangling with each other in her lap where she perched on air. Her hair rose in spikes like the mountains around her, a halo of almost transparent white hair, her blue eyes a small spark of life in her pale, still face. Her feet swung back and forth almost absently in an impatient, childish motion.

"Kindred?" asked a small voice from the air.

"I serve," Karla murmured, and bowed delicately. Jaenelle stepped out of the air and made a face at her.

"Where'd that come from?"

"Nowhere," Karla said with a quick grin. "I just felt like tweaking your nose, that's all."

Jaenelle smiled and held out her arms for a hug. "Silly Karla."

"That's me." She squeezed Jaenelle tightly and breathed in her psychic scent with relief for more than one of them. "How're you, then?"

"Pretty good." Jaenelle wrinkled her nose. "It's funny. There's a new Prince at the house. Wilhelmina likes him."

Karla tilted her head. "Prince as in Warlord Prince?"

Jaenelle nodded. "Yeah. Daemon Sadi's his name."

"Wilhelmina likes him. What do you think?"

Jaenelle paused, considering. "He reminds me of Saetan."

Karla waited.

"I don't know!" Jaenelle added, a little petulantly. "He's nice, I guess. He doesn't like Leland and Alexandra."

"Hmm," Karla said, noncommittally.

Jaenelle flushed, oddly. Karla filed that away for reference. "What about you? How's Morton?"

Karla glanced down, chewing her lip. "He's gone again. Hobart has him doing things a lot of the time now."

Jaenelle played with one ear, her gaze trained on Karla as she sat down on air next to her. "Talk to me."

Karla's mouth tightened to a little line and she retreated. "There's not really anything _new._"

Jaenelle was persistent, her voice gentle and insistent. "Then tell me what's old."

"They're just – all over the place. I can't get any peace. They keep wanting to _read _to me or play _games _with me."

"How many of them wear darker Jewels than Sapphire?"

Karla's mouth thinned more. "Enough."

Jaenelle was silent for a moment before she put both her arms around Karla's shoulders and pulled her into a hug. "I wish I could take you home with me."

Karla forced a laugh. "I don't think Alexandra would like that very much."

"Well, you could go live with Saetan, then. I'd take you to see him. He'd take care of you."

Karla tensed. "I don't know." She put her arms around Jaenelle, feeling how thin her friend was. "Why don't you go?"

Jaenelle sighed. "I've told you. Wilhelmina."

Karla sighed. "Right. And after she has her Offering…"

"Then I promise I'll come to Kaeleer. All right? And then you and Gabrielle and Morghann and everyone can come and live with me. We'll have a big house and the kindred will be there too."

Karla sighed, but it wasn't worth the effort to argue with her petite and powerful friend. She scratched her forehead. "Morton told me to say hello to you for him."

Jaenelle smiled, but it was thin. "Say hello to him. Hopefully I'll be able to see him soon. Did you have any trouble getting out today?"

"No." She didn't mention the trouble she'd be in when she got back; it would only worry Jaenelle, and Jaenelle didn't need more to worry about. "It was fine. No one was watching."

To Karla's relief, Jaenelle said nothing about the lie Karla knew she could see through in a heartbeat. "I'm glad." A pause. "Be careful, Karla."

Karla forced another laugh, trying to sound brave. "Careful? Me? You know I'm Lady Cautious herself, always."

Jaenelle didn't laugh, looking at her seriously, her eyes a peculiar dark shade that Karla had only seen once or twice before. "Please. Be careful."

Karla nodded, slowly. "Of what?"

"Of yourself." Jaenelle's eyes closed off, and Karla knew she would say no more. She bit her lip as the silence stretched out, looking at the fading light behind the mountains flashing off the ice.

"Jaenelle?" she said at last, in a small voice. "You're careful of yourself, aren't you?"

Jaenelle sighed a weary and hopeless sigh. "I'm as careful as I can be."

"And you'll…" she swallowed. "If you're in trouble, you'll call me, right? Like you made me promise to do?"

Silence. Karla snuck a look at her friend and saw her eyes, distant and unseeing.

"Jaenelle?"

A weary sigh. "I'm not going to get you hurt, Karla."

"You made _me _promise."

"That's different."

"Is not. Jaenelle, _please._"

Jaenelle pulled away and scooted a foot away from Karla, looking out at the mountains, mouth set in a little frown and brow furrowed. Several moments passed and Karla fidgeted nervously.

"I'll take care of myself, Karla." She said at last. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine."

"That wasn't a promise."

"No, it wasn't." Jaenelle stood up. "I'm sorry. I have to go."

Karla jumped to her feet. "Jaenelle, no, I didn't mean to make you angry. Don't go. It's not even sunset."

Jaenelle looked at her, her eyes bleak. "Rose is dead. I need to finish the web."

Karla blinked. "What?"

"I'm not angry, Karla," the other witch said, softly. "I have to finish some things…Winsol is in a few nights, you know. Drink for me."

Karla bit her lip, her eyes stinging at the bleak look in Jaenelle's eyes. "You'll come and see me after, right?"

Jaenelle's smile trembled slightly at the corners, barely holding. "Of _course _I will."

Karla nodded, slowly, reluctantly. "All right." She hugged Jaenelle once more before stepping back. "Be careful."

The smile did not touch those bleak, bleak sapphire eyes. "Who, me? Careful? You know I'm Lady Cautious herself…"

Karla laughed, but her heart wasn't in it. "Ha, ha," she said dryly. "Cut that out."

"Silly Karla."

She sighed. "That's me."

Jaenelle held out a hand. Karla took it and felt the small squeeze and the surge of strength. "You'll be all right," Jaenelle murmured. "You're a brave witch." Then she was gone.

Karla stared out at the darkening sky, worrying. The strange knot of foreboding tightened in her shoulders and she rolled them, nervously.

Two weeks until Jaenelle came back. She'd begin counting down the days as soon as she was back home.

She caught the Opal wind home, staring out at the Darkness and trying to understand what that bleak look in Jaenelle's eyes had meant.


End file.
